Comedian Frank Skinner, 51, returned to stand up this year after a ten-year break. He’s best known for his ITV chat show, Fantasy Football League, and for writing football anthem Three Lions. The DVD Frank Skinner Stand-Up and book On The Road are out now.

Why did you go back to stand-up?

I lost my mojo three years ago and thought the best way of getting it back was to return to the source. You can forget any skill in ten years, so I needed to prove to myself I could still do it.

What were the challenges of doing it again?

Remembering the material. I had to get my bit of paper out in the warm-ups which I always see as a failure in a comic. I want the audience to think Iâm making it up as I go along. Iâve also found people donât laugh at the same things they did ten years ago.

Like what?

Gay jokes are out now, which I didnât realise, not that I was doing vile homophobic stuff. People are also a bit unsure about terrorism jokes but I still do a George Formby-style song about Osama Bin Laden.

You did a 69-date tour. Do you ever bore yourself with your own material?

I was still messing around with the set for the first third of the tour. Then I started doing experiments like taking all the swearing out.

Does removing the swearing matter when your material has pretty explicit sex stuff?

Some people would baulk at the swearing whereas they were alright with the dirty stuff. The swearing is like having bright red lights saying âhere comes something rudeâ, so taking the swearing out gave me a way of sneaking the material up on them without them noticing. I donât really want to offend the audience. I want to do offensive material that doesnât actually offend anyone.

What sort of groupies do comedians attract?

I turn them away now Iâm over 50, Iâve left them all in my comedy will to Russell Brand. The groupies Iâve experienced in the past all seem nice. Iâve never had a kiss-and-tell from a groupie, only from my ex-wife – what does that tell you?

Have you pulled any nutters?

Iâve had the odd stalker but they seem to have disappeared. I got a belated birthday card from a stalker. Thatâs really the end, isnât it? When your stalker forgets your birthday.

Who were your favourite guests on your chat show?

Björk, Moby and Michael Stipe were all very interesting.

Was making Myleene Klass burst into tears an achievement?

I wouldnât say itâs an achievement. Part of you thinks âthe poor girlâ, the other part thinks âthisâll get me in the tabloidsâ. I told Gabby Logan about this on her radio show, that Myleene got worked up because people called her a âbitchâ in the street. Gabby said she had to apologise for me using the âbâ word. I thought âdid I say bollocks?â I couldnât work it out. In the new climate, âbitchâ is a taboo word now on the BBC.

Who was the worst guest?

Pamela Anderson. I did her twice. She arrived and said: âIâve been told I was on this show before but I donât remember it.â Then, halfway through a line of questioning that went nowhere, she said: âOh, I remember this show now, I remember the awkwardness.â I got the impression she doesnât know how to deal with men who donât flirt with her.

Did you consider going back to your job as an English lecturer?

Once a year, I think about doing a degree in something. I started doing a correspondence course in divinity which went nowhere. Iâm an autodidact so Iâm always trying to fill my brain with something new. Samuel Johnson was my main thing in English. Once in an interview, I had to pick my favourite book and I chose History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia [by Johnson]. I looked at the other answers later and everyone had said Bridget Jones. I felt I looked like I was trying too hard to be clever.